Butterflies Can't Fly In The Rain
by cherryblossom1212
Summary: DracoHermione story. Dark but there's alwyas a light at the end of the tunnel. Hermione realizes Ron is a jerk and looks for the only way out she can see. I really suck at summaries but it's a great story!


Chapter One: Get Up

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters. They all belong to the wonderfully talented JKR.

A/N: This is a very dark fic with lots of angst and language. It is rated M for a reason. Please do not read this if you are offended by sex, blood, and generally other darker sides of the human nature. I tried not to include many spoilers to DH, but there might be a few and I apologize!!! ENJOY!!!

Rain beat down in a torrential downpour, and looking out across the black, roiling clouds a lone girl stood. To anyone who witnessed the scene, it would appear as though the young woman was crying tears of the deepest crimson, but to those who knew what had happened, she was just numbing herself again.

Hermione Granger stood in the rain and tried to let the coldness of the water numb her mind. Her body was already numb, but she tried so desperately to numb her mind to what she had to deal with every day. A cut above Hermione's eyebrow trickled blood down her face and mingled with the rain; looking to anyone who saw as if she were crying tears of pure blood. She had upset her boyfriend again, and like always she had paid the price.

Everyone only thought Hermione was a happy girl, very much in love with Ron Weasley. This of course was not true. She suffered every day because of his quick temper. Not even her best friends Harry Potter or Ron's own sister Ginny knew of the abuse he inflicted on her almost daily.

"Hermione! Get back inside. You will get sick and then I'll have to take care of you," Ron's harsh voice barked at her. Involuntarily she cringed at the sound. The bruises on her face, arms, and legs were nothing compared to the permanent damage inflicted on her heart.

"Coming Ron. I'm sorry. I just felt like I needed to see the storm. I don't know what came over me," she apologized, hoping that she wouldn't receive any punishment for her actions.

"Merlin only knows what possessed you to do that. Now, get your stuff ready. We are leaving for Kings Cross in a few minutes," Ron shouted at her.

Hermione hung her head and, before entering the room she shared with Ginny at The Burrow, performed a concealment charm so that all the bruises and cuts were at least hidden for the time being.

Ginny looked up from her own packing to see Hermione enter, covered in water. She gasped and grabbed at her wand to quickly dry the pale, ghostly brunette.

"What on earth Hermione?! You could catch a cold," she spoke gently to her friend as she cast drying and warming spells on her friend. The girl looked like she had been in contact with a Dementor. The pain reflected in the brown haired girls' eyes was almost too much to witness. Ginny knew about Hermione's abusive relationship with her brother, but no one would believe her if she spoke up about it. And she had promised her friend to keep it a complete secret. Hermione loved Ron and if they were to break up, she would surely fall into a deep depression.

After boarding The Hogwarts Express, Hermione made her way to the Heads' compartment where she would be hiding out for the rest of the train ride. She had no desire to be anywhere near Ronald at the moment. He had spoken to her harshly just before they boarded the train, telling her to keep in mind that if she tried to tell anyone about what he did to her that she would suffer ten times what she already did.

Hermoine's heart had frozen over at those words. She gave him an icy, hate filled glare as she stormed off, for the first time ever feeling so empowered. They were heading back to school where she thrived. She had the power now. She was Head Girl and although she realized that only one person could be Head Boy, she knew that she would just have to ignore the git.

The door to her compartment slid open and said git walked right in the door.

"Hello Granger. You look positively awful. Your last fuck with the Weasel not go so well?" Draco remarked with his trademark smirk in place.

As he looked at her waiting for a reply, he realized that when he mentioned Weasley her eyes iced up, loathing being so clearly reflected in their honey brown depths. The reaction puzzled the Slytherin Prince but he chose to ignore it when he realized that Hermione was not going to give him any type of response. This in itself was an odd occurance.

After a few minutes, Draco settled back into one of the plush seats of the compartment. He kept casting covert glances at Hermione, and slowly he realized that there was some sort of charm cast over her. It was wavering a bit here and there and he barely caught sight of bruises marring her perfect cream colored skin.

Draco concentrated very hard and eventually cast the counter charm and the bruises and cuts shimmered into view all over Hermione's body. His wandless, non verbal magic was powerful, but he had hoped never to have to use it this way.

When he saw the evidence of such obvious abuse, his icy heart melted. He felt for the young woman. She was living in hell, but he didn't know how to stop it. He couldn't confront her, and Hermione didn't even notice that the concealment charm was gone; so lost in her own thoughts as she was. A very strange feeling of pity hit the Slytherin and he replaced the charm without her even noticing. The damage to her body once more faded from sight.

The carriages arrived at the front doors of Hogwarts and the students all clamored out. Hermione, Draco, and the prefects all started rounding up the students, first years first to get them into the Great Hall. Unbeknownst to Hermione, Draco kept his eyes peeled for the source of all her pain.

The Start of Term feast went well as did the sorting that year. Although it was a very sad occasion without the loved Headmaster, Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall had done a wonderful job.

After the feast had ended, Hermione and Draco instructed the prefects to escort the students to their respective common rooms while the head boy and girl headed to the Headmistress's office to receive their duties, password, and directions to their own living quarters.

Draco wanted to use the fact that he and Hermione would be sharing a common area to his advantage so he could keep an eye on her and her injuries to see if she received more. If she did, he had a feeling he would be paying the red headed git a little late night visit.

It wasn't that he was infatuated with Granger; it was just that he refused to let another woman be abused that he was acquainted with. His father abusing his mother was enough for him. Oh sure, Lucius might put on the act that he loved his wife, but Draco knew that underneath that façade lad a dark, cruel man who only was interested in furthering his own standing with the Dark Lord.

_Don't do this Granger. Don't make me protect you. _He thought as he watched the smartest witch of their time levitate her trunk up the stairs towards her room. Draco caught a glimpse of a limp to her step and it was enough to make his blood boil. The Weasel would definitely have something to answer for when Draco got to him.

Later that night, Draco had piled himself up on a couch in the joint common room, a book in his hands. He had started out trying to get some reading in, but as he got more into the book, his thoughts wandered ever more to the young witch he could hear sobbing quietly in her room. It surprised him when she emerged, her eyes slightly red and puffy from all the crying he had heard. He tried to keep quiet, he truly did, but sometimes his mouth ran away with him before his head caught up.

"What's wrong Granger?" he asked nonchalantly, trying to contain his curiosity of what was upsetting her so.

"Leave me alone Malfoy! It's none of your business," she snapped at him. Hermione had no clue why Draco Malfoy was suddenly so interested in her life, but it was unnerving to say the least. "I don't need to confide in you," she replied weakly as she headed towards the portrait hole. She had her book bag slung over one arm as usual so no one would suspect anything other than she was going off to the library instead of meeting up with Ron by the lake.

Hermione gave one quick glance back at Malfoy before heading out the portrait door and off towards the lake. It was going to be another fight. She could feel it already and she was scared. Actually she was beyond scared. Ron could get so violent. She might wind up hurt even.

Moonlight drenched the land between Hogwarts and the lake. Hermione could see Ron already there waiting on her. She involuntarily shuddered because she could already see the look of anger on his features. She hadn't done anything to make him angry so she wasn't sure why he was upset with her. Hermione shook her head, hoping that she wouldn't be on the receiving end of any of his tirade tonight as she approached cautiously.

"Hey Ron," she said softly as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

"Get off me you filthy whore!" he shouted, roughly shoving her to the ground. "Why are you sharing a room with a boy… Malfoy no less!" he screamed at her.

"We are the Head boy and girl Ron. We have to share a common room and bathroom, but I'm not sleeping in the same room as he is. Our rooms are actually at two totally opposite ends of the dorm. I don't even talk to him so how can I be a whore?" she asked, a bit too haughty for his tastes she realized too late as his fist flew towards her face. She barely ducked out of the way in time.

"I won't have you hitting me anymore Ronald!" Hermione screamed. She had had enough. Something inside her had snapped when she realized that there were lots better men out there, and one of them may just be right under her nose. "It's over! Don't you ever try to touch me again! I will have the entire Ministry and all of Hogwarts after you if you do," she threatened, meaning every word of it.

"Hermione I'm so sorry!" he said with strangled breaths. Ron was so mad he was having trouble breathing. His anger got the better of him and he charged her, tackling her to the ground. Ron began pummeling the girl with his fists over and over. Hermione managed to get her arms up to protect her face, but he just beat her stomach, chest, and arms. When he finally felt better he stood up and looked at the bloody mess he had made. Ron ripped her shirt off of her and wiped blood, her blood off his hands before calmly walking away to leave her there, bleeding and in pain on the ground.

Little did he know that a pair of steel grey eyes had witnessed the entire exchange from his hidden spot behind a tree close to the lake.


End file.
